


Are You Okay?

by splkespiegel



Category: The Venture Bros
Genre: M/M, my second vbros fic and it's more petebilly, such a surprise i know
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-20
Updated: 2015-04-20
Packaged: 2018-03-24 23:20:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3788086
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/splkespiegel/pseuds/splkespiegel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Pete is very good at lying, and Billy's getting tired of rolling with it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Are You Okay?

Pete was very good at lying. It’s hard to be bad at something when you’ve done it for your entire life, after all. He could make up some bullshit answer to any question, big or small, from “how’s it going” to “do you still love me”.

He’d never been quite sure when or how it started, but he often lied about the little things. Every day when he was still in school his mother would ask him how his day was, or if he had any work to do, or something else trivial; and he’d always say that his day was okay, or that he only had a little bit of work to finish, even if he’d spent half an hour hiding in the bathroom that day or had a project due tomorrow that he hadn’t even touched yet.

Eventually, Pete got to a point that he would lie about some of the most important things. Of course he’s finished paying his taxes, he’s not _that_ irresponsible, and yes, he has a steady job that pays well and is absolutely not living in a trailer in the desert backwater with a man he’s dragged down to hell and back.

Pete was very good at lying, and Billy knew that whenever he asked Pete anything. He’d learned that it was much easier to roll with whatever Pete made up and let it bother him later.

That was what Billy had done for the past 15 years, but he was at the end of his chain.

Maybe it was the fact that he was so tired, maybe it was the fact that Pete seemed to be doing poorly the past few weeks, but Billy made his way to Pete’s door and cracked it open.

He glanced at Pete’s alarm clock, the numbers 4:17 AM glowing faintly on the screen like a reminder that the wee hours of the morning were most definitely not the time to have a heart-to-heart with your roommate. Billy hopped up onto the bed and shook Pete awake.

“White. White, wake up, I have something to ask you.” Billy whispered.

Pete groaned and rolled over to face the wall. “Billy, go to sleep. It’s like –” He paused, glancing at the alarm clock before realizing that he didn’t have his contacts in. “It’s really early.”

“This is important. Get up.”

“I’m not leaving this bed, pally.” Pete mumbled, pulling the covers up.

“You don’t have to.” Billy said. Pete made some sort of agreeing noise and Billy took a deep breath. He still wasn’t sure how to voice his concerns, so he started simple. “Are you okay?”

Pete grunted and squeezed his eyes shut. “You sure this is important enough to wake me up? Yes, Billy, I’m fine.”

“Don’t lie to me, White.” Billy blurted out.

“’M not lying.” Pete mumbled, throwing his arm over his eyes.

“Don’t try to tell me that you’re okay when we both know you’re not.”

Pete ground to a halt at that. He had some other response on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed it down and tried to think of something else, something more appropriate, something that wouldn’t make Billy blow up at him.

“Y’know, you’re not doing so hot either.” He finally said, as if that would settle the entire matter.

“At least I’m honest about not being okay.” Billy pointed out, crawling over to the other side of the bed so that Pete would actually look at him. “Tell me the truth. I know something’s bothering you and I want to know what.”

Pete paused and chewed on his lip. How could he be honest about what that something was? How could he look Billy in the eyes and tell him that he wasn’t okay, that he was always upset and that he hated himself because he brought Billy down from success to where they were now? That Billy could have gone to MIT and been a real, honest to God doctor if it weren’t for some coked out albino barging into his life?

He couldn’t, and as that thought crossed his mind, he started to cry.

Pete couldn’t remember the last time he’d cried. Was it at his grandfather’s funeral? His first night away from home? He didn’t know. But he cried now, as Billy wrapped him up in the strongest embrace he could manage, and blubbered about how Billy deserved better than him.

Billy rubbed circles into Pete’s back and let him sob. “It’s okay, White. I’m here.”

“You shouldn’t be.” Pete choked out. “You should be somewhere else. You should… you should be happy.”

“I am happy, you idiot. I’m happy _because_ I’m with you. You’re about the most annoying person on the planet, but… I love you. I’m not leaving.”

That jarred Pete just enough that he forgot himself a little. He finally wrapped his arms around Billy and pulled him closer, just to make sure that he was really there and this wasn’t some sort of dream.

“I’m sorry.” He mumbled into Billy’s shoulder. It sounded wet and pathetic, but he didn’t care.

“I’m sorry, too.” Billy replied. Neither of them had to say for what.


End file.
